Longevity of life is not complete without good health, hence health and longevity go hand in hand. The puzzle is, what are those invisible moments that breach the health out of us and reduce the life quality? The common answer would be ‘lifestyle’. Yoga and Ayurveda are encyclopedias of ‘way of living’.
As you get older, energy levels in the body drop and demand for nutrition increases. While aging is inevitable, many of the degenerative changes associated with aging and inflatable water slide sometimes even deemed “natural” after a certain age, can be prevented if proper vigilance is maintained. Recent medical research confirms that good nutrition can prevent, or at least delay conditions like osteoporosis, diabetes, and heart disease. Reports reveal that one third to one half of the health problems of people over 65 years of age are related to diet.
“Proper nutrition” is the mantra for “graceful aging”. Several interesting facts trail the longevity sensus of the world:
- Japan seems to have the longest life expectancy in the world. People in Okinawan Islands in southern Japan enjoy even longer and healthier lives than the average Japanese. Lots of grains, vegetables and soy adorn their diet, while they consciously cut down on meat, poultry and dairy products.
- Various studies of Mormons, Seventh Day Adventists and Trappist Monks reveal that all people who follow a vegetarian diet and engage in a prudent lifestyle show increased life expectancy.
- North Americans also seem to be doing something right since they are healthier than they were two decades ago. People over age 85 are one of the fastest growing segments of the population, proving that today, if you practice healthy lifestyle, you could eventually live longer, healthier.
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Photo Contribution by Melinda Juang http://yunyunportraits.wix.com
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